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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22720357">A gift of love</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rogercat/pseuds/Rogercat'>Rogercat</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>TOLKIEN J. R. R. - Works &amp; Related Fandoms, The Silmarillion and other histories of Middle-Earth - J. R. R. Tolkien</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Parents, Beleriand, Elf/Human Relationship(s), F/M, First Age, Gil-galad's parents, Middle Earth, Newborn Children, Romance, Secret Marriage</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-02-14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-02-14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-04-28 15:47:09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>810</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22720357</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rogercat/pseuds/Rogercat</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Aegnor and Andreth bore a secret together</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Aegnor | Ambaráto/Andreth | Saelind</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>55</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>A gift of love</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Most people did not know about it because he formerly had kept it mostly as a hobby in his free time between whatever few duties he had done as a prince, being the fourth son of the Noldorin High King's third son meant that his three older brothers and nearly all their male cousins had taken the more important roles simply because they all were older than him, but Aegnor had some skills in wood carving.  </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“There. I think this might be a good design.”  </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He had never had a reason to try out lovespoons before, though he had heard about them already in Valinor and personally thought them to be a lovely craft when he saw a well-made one. Surely Andreth would like one of those, if he made one with his own hands to gift her the next time they met? </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>~X~X~X~X~X~X</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Andreth always had a talent for tablet weaving from a young age. If she wanted to give someone a special gift, a friend or family member, it would be something she made with this. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I need to make it strong, so it can be used for a long time…” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Aegnor had said that the heraldry of his father House had the colours of white and gold, because it was meant to symbol the golden hair of his father Finarfin, who had passed down his hair colour to all five of his children, and the silver hair of his mother Eärwen. Though from what she had seen with her own eyes, the few times she had met his three brothers, lord Orodreth seemed to have more of a pale blonde and lord Angrod were more of a dark golden. Galadriel she could not say anything of, for the younger sister of her lover was away in Doriath. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“But I do not have gold thread, so I have to use normal yellow together with this nice white one…”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The yarn she had spun and dyed herself, all from the very beginning, for that was when Andreth felt her work to become the very best she could create. And she wanted this belt to look good for him. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Maybe I can try some different colours for him another time.” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She hummed for herself as she kept working, enjoying the mental image of how Aegnor might react on her gift for him. If anything, Andreth did not doubt that he would enjoy it and wear the belt with pride. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>~X~X~X~X~X~X</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Above all, everything else which they had given each other, there was one secret gift they shared: </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Gil-galad.” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>This babe was the greatest secret between them, a child born between a mortal and a Elf. Andreth had seen a strong star in the wee hours of dawn shortly before her labour started, and somehow viewed it as a omen. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“A secret scion of my father's blood. With both his grandfather and great-grandfather being High Kings of the Noldor in Valinor...Ereinion,” Aegnor smiled at his secret wife and their little son in her arms. For now, his existence had to be hidden, since they did not want any attention drawn to him when he was far too little to understand why. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I shall pray for that he will be able to prove himself to become some form of role model for other Half-Elves, if there will be more of them in the future. Surely that would please him too? And perhaps he will live long enough to help your family in the battles against the Dark One, for all of that I wishes that he shall not need to enter the battlefield.” </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Little Gil-galad had inherited the dark hair of Andreth, but he took mostly after his father in appearance, making it rather possible that he might look more Elven than Man as a adult. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I will tell Cirdan about his origins when Gil-galad is old enough, and ask him to foster our son when you have left the world. That could be a way to keep him away from battle.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>How could Aegnor and Andreth foretell, that due to a lack of written information in the future and some very horrible disasters for the Noldor here in Middle-earth, Gil-galad's paternity would be mistaken as either being Fingon or Orodreth, and that he would not be counted among the Half-elves at all because Cirdan refused to break his promise about revealing who his parents truly were, something Gil-galad himself would refuse to do as a High King of the Noldor in exile?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>That Gil-galad really was the first child born to a Elf and mortal, his father being Aegnor and his mother Andreth, his actual birth year being about seventy years before both his parents would meet their end, not many years after their first meeting and falling in love. </span>
</p>
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